Banana taped to the wall, went on sale in gallery Art Basel Miami Beach (Florida) this week at a price of $120 thousand.
According to the website Artnet, dedicated to the art market, two out of three of these bananas are already sold in the gallery of modern art Perrotin in Paris, and another one for $150 thousand.
Banana on the wall is the work of Italian artist and sculptor Maurizio Cattelan. The work, entitled «comedian,» is a banana (by the way, bought in an ordinary grocery store in Miami) and a piece of adhesive tape.
The founder of the gallery Emmanuel Perrotin Perrotin told CNN that bananas are «a symbol of world trade, ambiguity, and a classic tool for humor,» adding that the artist transforms everyday objects into something that is both admiration, and criticism.
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The talk of the town in Miami right now is Maurizio Cattelan»s “Comedian,” a banana 🍌 duct taped to the wall. Two have already sold for $120,000 at Perrotin 😉 read more, including about the banana my husband, @nnddmmyy, hung on his dorm wall for two years, on Artnet News link in bio @artnet @galerieperrotin @mauriziocattelan @artbasel #art #conceptualart #banana #sculpture #artbasel #artbaselmiamibeach #artbaselmiami #artfair #artgallery #artwork #whatisart #isthisart #miami #miamibeach #florida #miamiflorida #mauriziocattelan #perrotin #galerieperrotin #artist #bananapeel #ducttape #artnetnews #artcollector #vippreview #artjournalism #artjournalist #openingday #artgallery #gallery #artworld
Note to potential buyers – neither the gallery nor the author himself does not give clear instructions on what to do when the banana starts to rot.
As reported in the Galerie Perrotin, the artist first proposed this idea a year ago.
«Then, Cattelan was thinking about a sculpture in the shape of a banana. Every time he traveled, he took a banana and hang it in your hotel room, to find inspiration. He made several models: first from the resin, then bronze, and then returned to the original idea of this banana.»
Cattelan is known for sculptures that challenge popular culture. One of his works – the Golden bowl cost about $6 million, which in September pulled out of the wall and stole from Blanchissage Palace in England.
Police has since arrested five people in connection with the theft. However, while for the return of the bowl, it was announced a generous reward, it could not be found.
